The European Space Agency has signed a contract to send a spacecraft closer to the Sun than ever before. British firms have been given the task of building the solar orbiter to withstand temperatures of around 500C.

BBC News

第二页：中英双语听力稿

A United Nations-backed court has found the former President of Liberia, Charles Taylor, guilty of aiding and abetting crimes against humanity, murder, rape and terrorism. The court in The Hague said Mr Taylor was criminally responsible for supporting the Revolutionary United Front rebels in neighbouring Sierra Leone during the civil war in the 1990s. He'll be sentenced next month. Mr Taylor's lawyer described the trial as politically motivated. From The Hague, Peter Biles.

联合国法庭认定利比里亚前总统查尔斯·泰勒涉嫌帮助并教唆反人类、谋杀和恐怖主义罪行。海牙法庭称，20世纪内战期间，泰勒曾非法支持邻国塞拉利昂的革命联合阵线叛军。他将于下月被判刑，泰勒的律师称审判有政治动机。Peter Biles在海牙报道。

The prosecution had wanted to show that Mr Taylor was the key figure in arming and supporting the rebels in Sierra Leone in the late 1990s. The trial chamber said Charles Taylor's influence fell short of command responsibility, but on all 11 charges he was found criminally responsible for aiding and abetting the rebel forces and planning crimes. The judges also said there had been a continuous supply of diamonds from Sierra Leone provided to Mr Taylor in exchange for weapons.